4 ms·

I know relating things is very natural, but I don't feel Facebook is the new AOL at all until they offer ISP and a web browser. That is what made AOL AOL. Faceb

by sosuke 12y ago

I know relating things is very natural, but I don't feel Facebook is the new AOL at all until they offer ISP and a web browser. That is what made AOL AOL. Facebook may be many peoples main destination, but it isn't how they connect to the internet, it isn't primarily a gateway to other sites. Facebook doesn't want you to leave Facebook at all.

vidarh 12y ago
> Facebook doesn't want you to leave Facebook at all. AOL didn't use to let you leave AOL. For many years it was a 100% isolated walled garden. That is what made AOL AOL many years before AOL became an ISP. They only grudgingly started adding ways of accessing internet content as the growth of the net so outpaced AOL that they had no alternative in order to keep subscribers.
- jlgaddis 12y ago
  Indeed. And, if memory serves, when they first began providing access to the Internet they also charged extra for it (although I may very well be mixing them up with someone else).
- jghn 12y ago
  And so began the Eternal September and the <aol> faux-tag on Usenet. I remember for a while on Usenet arguments were won by simply pointing out the other person had an @aol.com address.
spacefight 12y ago
"until they offer ISP" https://internet.org/ https://internet.org/ Also, in some countries such as Germany, WhatsApp serves as a virtual mobile provider. https://gigaom.com/2014/04/08/whatsapp-becomes-a-virtual-carrier-in-germany-with-the-help-of-e-plus/ https://gigaom.com/2014/04/08/whatsapp-becomes-a-virtual-car...
- sek 12y ago
  It's just a marketing thing where they offer 1 gig whatsapp traffic (still a cap). It's like 1000 free minutes, nothing else. Becoming a virtual provider works with E-Plus, that's why there are very innovative ones in Germany. I use simquadrat.
orbifold 12y ago
Facebook just achieves lock-in in a different way, AOL forced its subscribers to use their portal and aggressively tried to hook people by providing free samples. Facebook has captured enough of the market that people "voluntarily" only interact with their online friends through facebook, or rather they are forced to due to network effects and spend a significant amount of time consuming "content" and ads. It also turns the dynamic of the web, where you actively seek out information through search and by following links, on the head, by pushing information to you, forcing you to at least acknowledge them. It has a similar ad-ridden, homogenous aestetic as AOL, practically unbearable without some ad blocker.
mathattack 12y ago
I think the analogy is about being the sole portal and walled garden, rather than a browser. For a long time AOL didn't have the browser, just internal content. It morphed from online for the leaders to internet for grandma and grandpa. Going too much beyond this will break the analogy.
mslot 12y ago
> and a web browser The Facebook app, on Android at least, uses a built-in browser when you click a link.

by sosuke 12y ago

vidarh 12y ago

> Facebook doesn't want you to leave Facebook at all. AOL didn't use to let you leave AOL. For many years it was a 100% isolated walled garden. That is what made AOL AOL many years before AOL became an ISP. They only grudgingly started adding ways of accessing internet content as the growth of the net so outpaced AOL that they had no alternative in order to keep subscribers.

jlgaddis 12y ago
Indeed. And, if memory serves, when they first began providing access to the Internet they also charged extra for it (although I may very well be mixing them up with someone else).
jghn 12y ago
And so began the Eternal September and the <aol> faux-tag on Usenet. I remember for a while on Usenet arguments were won by simply pointing out the other person had an @aol.com address.

spacefight 12y ago

"until they offer ISP" https://internet.org/ https://internet.org/ Also, in some countries such as Germany, WhatsApp serves as a virtual mobile provider. https://gigaom.com/2014/04/08/whatsapp-becomes-a-virtual-carrier-in-germany-with-the-help-of-e-plus/ https://gigaom.com/2014/04/08/whatsapp-becomes-a-virtual-car...

sek 12y ago
It's just a marketing thing where they offer 1 gig whatsapp traffic (still a cap). It's like 1000 free minutes, nothing else. Becoming a virtual provider works with E-Plus, that's why there are very innovative ones in Germany. I use simquadrat.

orbifold 12y ago

Facebook just achieves lock-in in a different way, AOL forced its subscribers to use their portal and aggressively tried to hook people by providing free samples. Facebook has captured enough of the market that people "voluntarily" only interact with their online friends through facebook, or rather they are forced to due to network effects and spend a significant amount of time consuming "content" and ads. It also turns the dynamic of the web, where you actively seek out information through search and by following links, on the head, by pushing information to you, forcing you to at least acknowledge them. It has a similar ad-ridden, homogenous aestetic as AOL, practically unbearable without some ad blocker.

mathattack 12y ago

I think the analogy is about being the sole portal and walled garden, rather than a browser. For a long time AOL didn't have the browser, just internal content. It morphed from online for the leaders to internet for grandma and grandpa. Going too much beyond this will break the analogy.

mslot 12y ago

> and a web browser The Facebook app, on Android at least, uses a built-in browser when you click a link.